Philistines
Few nations play as dominant a role in biblical history as do the Philistines. Settled in the lands along the Mediterranean coast (the area of contemporary Gaza), they were a continual…
Moving Plans
It is not uncommon to picture the era of the rabbis of the Talmud as a world in which the vast majority of Jews still lived in all Jewish environments. In reality, however, the sages…
Zmirot (Songs of Shabbat)
Singing zmirot, songs of Shabbat, on Friday night not only expresses joy for the gift of Shabbat, but also offers praise to God. While many of…
Time Watch
Organize your day to ensure that you have time to eat the Seudah Hamafseket (meal before the fast) before sunset.
The Jews of Crete and the Purim of Candia
The Jewish presence on the Island of Crete is rather ancient, with records of a Jewish community in Crete going as far back as the early Roman Empire. Living under the rule of the…
Josephus
Some historians are scholars, others are propagandists, and still others live the history that they go on to record. Yosef ben Matityahu, better known as Flavius Josephus (or just…
Forget Custer
Hungarian immigrant and apprentice cigar maker, Sigmund Shlesinger (1848-1928) probably never expected to become a frontiersman. After he ended up in Kansas and had several business…
Rabbi Meir
The Mishna is a collection of citations of the oral law by an array of brilliant scholars. There are, however, many Mishnaic statements that are anonymous. According to Talmud Gittin…
Kee Tavo 5764-2004
"The Centrality of Joy in Jewish Observance" by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald Parashat Kee Tavo is one of the two parashiot in the Torah that features the terrifying prophecies known as the…
Tzav-Purim 5760 – 2000
"Remembering Amalek: A Contemporary View" by Rabbi Ephraim Z. Buchwald While this coming week's parasha is Parashat Tzav, I would rather focus today on the joyous, but complex holiday…